Quebec nurses union says job postings requiring bilingualism are discriminatory
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MONTREAL — A nurses union on Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula says job postings by the local health-care network discriminate against francophones because they require that applicants speak English.
The union has asked the Health Department to intervene by ending the bilingualism requirement for about 20 internal job postings for nurses and nursing assistants in the Gaspésie regional health authority.
“Several health-care workers are being refused jobs in Gaspésie under the pretext that their English is insufficient,” union president Pier-Luc Bujold said in a Tuesday news release. “Discriminating against French speakers is a behaviour from another century in Quebec.”
In a phone interview, Bujold described the bilingualism requirement as “senseless” given the staff shortages and recruitment challenges plaguing the health system. He said he thinks the measure disqualifies the majority of would-be applicants in the region.
